The present invention relates to a method of providing a system of selecting feminine hygiene products to a consumer.
Absorbent hygiene products, such as sanitary napkins, panty liners, and incontinence pads, are devices that are typically worn in the crotch area of an undergarment. These devices are designed to absorb and retain liquid and other discharges from the human body and to prevent soiling of the wearer""s body and clothing. Sanitary napkins and panty liners are types of absorbent articles worn by women. A wide variety of shapes and dimensions of such articles are currently used by women for the collection of menses and other bodily discharges.
Current methods of marketing absorbent articles as feminine protection products include systems differentiated by absorbency levels (light flow, moderate flow, heavy flow), special needs (overnight, teens), area coverage (length, width, wings), and thickness (regular, ultra thin). These current methods can cause confusion for the consumer and do not lend themselves to fashion or femininity, both of which are important to female consumers.
One problem not addressed in the prior art relates to the wide variations in styles of panties. As protection of panties from soiling by body fluids is a primary function of feminine hygiene products, the problems of both protection and aesthetics in relation to xe2x80x9cforce fittingxe2x80x9d, for example, the same sanitary napkin style, into a number of panty styles has gone unresolved.
Feminine hygiene products specifically designed to be worn with thong undergarments are known in the art. The chief design consideration for such articles is the narrow dimension of the rear portion of thong undergarments. However, as will be shown below, other currently marketed panties can be better protected by feminine hygiene products designed to match their dimensions.
The following references relate to absorbent structures: U.S. Pat. No. 5,558,663, issued Sep. 24, 1996, in the names of Weinberger et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,584,829, issued Dec. 17, 1996, in the names of Lavash et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,683,373, issued Nov. 4, 1997, in the name of Darby; PCT Pat. Publication WO 98/51249, published Nov. 19, 1998, in the name of Van Der Meulen; PCT Pat. Publication WO 00/59426, published Oct. 12, 2000, in the name of Castellana; PCT Pat. Publication WO 00/72790, published Dec. 7, 2000, in the name of Persson; PCT Pat. Publication WO 01/35891, published May 25, 2001 in the names of Drevik et al.; and PCT Pat. Publication WO 01/35887, published May 25, 2001, in the name of Persson.
The present invention relates to a method of selecting among systems of feminine hygiene products by a consumer. The method comprises providing a system of selecting feminine hygiene products to a consumer, the method comprising the steps of: providing an array of feminine hygiene products from at least one array, wherein said array is comprised of one or more feminine hygiene products and wherein said array is adapted to correspond to a predetermined range of panty styles, and, providing information to the consumer regarding the products which make up the array, thereby enabling said consumer to select feminine hygiene products by panty style.
This invention also relates to a method of selecting feminine hygiene products by a consumer, comprising the steps of: viewing information regarding at least one array of feminine hygiene products, wherein said array is comprised of one or more feminine hygiene products and wherein said array is adapted to correspond to a predetermined range of panty styles, and selecting feminine hygiene products by panty style.
Other optional parameters could be incorporated into either method as desired including, but not limited to predetermined ranges of one or more of the following: body size, absorbency levels, area coverage and thickness/body fit.
The present invention also relates to a kit comprising the absorbent articles, as described above, packaging containing the absorbent articles, and indicia on the package to inform the purchaser of those panty styles with which the article may suitably be used. The indicia used can be in the form of photographs. Without being limited to those panties listed, the panty styles, with which the absorbent article is used, can be selected from the group consisting of: a) thong panties, b) high leg cut panties (also known as French cut panties), c) hipsters, d) bikini panties and e) briefs.